Cell phone

T-Mobile... You´re saying she is on roaming? The local VIVO or CLARO cell phone providers should pick up the toll.

There should be no weak signal unless she´s very far from their antennas, or she is in a location surrounded by high mountains. VIVO has the best reception with even more antennas. I´ve been to places where Claro is totally silent but VIVO can transmit readily. I think they have better frequency signal...

If she is in a rural or isolated area she can buy an antenna (looks like a TV antenna mounted outside the house or on top of a roof). But this is only stationary.

robal

She is in Sao Paolo, video calls always get dropped and whatsapp sketchy

That´s strange if she is in that big city - being the financial center of Brazil. It´s not another part of São Paulo State right?

No, she has a condo on the outskirts of the city. I bought her this phone because we have many friends from Brazil living in Michigan USA that bought T-Mobile phones to use in Brazil her Brazilian phone has always been sketchy

Probably a defect in the phone itself. She should have it checked at a repair center. If she´s got the warranty card and receipt she could bring it to an authorized repair center of the brand in São Paulo...

robal

We typically do not buy phones here, they are leased through the carrier

Even better! You should return that for a replacement phone... Of course it depends of how long she´ll
stay in Brazil. If it´s only a few months it might not matter much.

robal

Take the phone to vivo and make sure the settings are correct. My wife has done this and they are happy to do it for her.

Jim

You should know that T-mobile global coverage is only in 2G (128 kbps) speeds which is only good for finding info on internet or getting directions.

https://www.t-mobile.com/optional-servi … ZEX0YQ8553

What you should do is get a local Brasillian SIM for video chatting and stuff, I recommend Vivo.

However, I would recommend Justvoip. I used it to call my wife when I was abroad. It offers free calls to landlines in Brazil. When you buy credit e.g. 10 euros, you get 120 free days.

https://www.justvoip.com

Even better, get a free Google Voice number with a US gmail account and then buy ObiHai Obi202 adapter from Amazon or other online store , set it up and send to your wife and then you can call her for free or she can call you or any US or Canada number for free.